1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a stator of a rotary electric machine.
2. Description of Related Art
JP-A-11-299153 discloses an alternator for a vehicle which has a stator with curled coil ends. The portions of the coil, disposed between slots which are spaced apart by a predetermined pitch, are curled and twisted in a radial direction at the center. Therefore, all curled portions of the coil are circumferentially arranged side by side. In this arrangement, it is difficult to arrange the curled portions to avoid collisions with other portions, since the coil is widened at the curled portions-especially when a thick coil wire is used.
JP-B-2927288 and JP-A-11-164506 disclose alternators for a vehicle having stator windings which are made of a plurality of segments welded to each other. In this arrangement, the welded portions require a complicated manufacturing process and an additional insulating process.